U.S. Ag Secretary to tour Harrod greenhouse

Central State visit second time Ag Secertary there in four years

WASHINGTON D.C. — U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue will be stopping in Allen and Mercer counties Wednesday as part of his third “Back to Our Roots” RV tour.

During the RV tour, which also includes stops in Michigan and Kentucky, Perdue is expected to hear ideas and concerns from local farmers, agriculture students and researchers, business owners, community leaders, and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) employees.

Secretary Perdue will also be joined by Administrator Linda McMahon, the head of the Small Business Administration (SBA), for part of the tour. The tour runs from Tuesday to Friday.

Perdue and McMahon will tour Amherst Greenhouse in Harrod on Wednesday morning before taking part in a working lunch at the City Club in Lima with the Lima Chamber of Commerce and Ohio Farm Bureau. The town hall event starts at 11:30 a.m.

Later, Perdue and McMahon will tour Celina Tent in Mercer County to see their manufacturing facilities and the tents made for disaster relief. This event is scheduled for 1:45 p.m. at Celina Tent in Celina.

“As always, our ‘Back to our Roots’ RV tour is an opportunity to get out of Washington, D.C. to hear directly from the American people in the agriculture community,” Secretary Perdue said. “While Congress continues its work on the Farm Bill, rural prosperity, and many other agriculture priorities, USDA stands ready to assist in any way possible and to be a voice for America’s farmers, ranchers, producers and foresters.”

Perdue was appointed Agriculture Secretary by President Donald Trump in January 2017.